


What's the Time, Mr Wolf?

by SQuinn03



Category: BnHA, 僕のヒーローアカデミア | Boku no Hero Academia | My Hero Academia
Genre: Banter, Fluff, Halloween, Humour, Little Red Riding Hood - Freeform, Little Red Riot Hood, M/M, Short Story, Sweet, bakushima, kiribaku, kirishima x bakugou, wolf - Freeform, wolf Bakugou
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-31
Updated: 2020-10-31
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:07:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 6
Words: 13,490
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27290944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SQuinn03/pseuds/SQuinn03
Summary: If anyone else had come face-to-face with a seething, drooling canine, they would have run away without sparing a second glance. However, our protagonist for this story is none other than the courageous Eijirou Kirishima. The last thing he would ever want to do is turn away.
Relationships: Bakugou Katsuki & Kirishima Eijirou, Bakugou Katsuki/Kirishima Eijirou
Comments: 2
Kudos: 96





	1. A New Challenge

**Author's Note:**

> This is a short but sweet story I wrote for Halloween! I hope you all enjoy it. For the longest time, I have been wanting to write a cute tale about wolf Bakugou and Kirishima as Little Red Riding Hood, so this year I decided to unleash it after planning for nearly a year haha. Please leave your thoughts below - I really had fun writing this sweet, fluffy fic :)

If anyone else had come face-to-face with a seething, drooling canine, they would have run away without sparing a second glance. However, our protagonist for this story is none other than the courageous Eijirou Kirishima. The last thing he would ever want to do is turn away.

This isn’t exactly what you can call a ‘traditional’ story but let us begin.

Our story begins with a red skirt, a red hood, and an iconic basket too. Who is our little daredevil? None other than Little Red Riot Hood. Although, he also liked to be called ‘Kirishima’.

It was routine for Kirishima to help his mother bake and cook a variety of dishes; it ranged from brownies to cake to fried rice- a selection from which I wish I could have a taste of as well. However, this was his first mission of delivering the treats to his grandmother’s house, whose cottage resided on the other side of the forest.

Now why didn’t the grandma just move in with them or vice versa? Don’t ask me, I’m just telling the story.

Kirishima’s mother had finished packing his basket in the early morning, while the redhead was pumped up with excitement to visit his favourite, and only, grandma (as far as he knew). The eager male was sporting a white blouse with a brown, tight waistcoat along with his favourite hood, of course commemorating his idol, Crimson Riot. His boots were brown and laced up, and he also wore red gloves as the perfect match to his almost rosy aesthetic.

“Remember to stay on the path, Eijirou.” His mother warned, waving a strict finger at him. Most teenagers would probably roll their eyes at her nagging words. However Kirishima understood her protective behaviour. It was just the two of them left, and grandma, of course. Mother bear would want to keep her baby alive at all costs. Any mother would. 

As much as she wanted to trap Kirishima inside like her own personal, red-headed Rapunzel, she also felt that the boy needed a bit of freedom if his curious nature was ever able to be quenched. As much as she feared the darkness in the universe, she trusted that Kirishima could be the little light of sunshine that the outside world would need.

No one had yet been able to resist his toothy grin and can-do attitude.

“Yes Ma! Don’t worry, I’ll be careful.” She placed a light kiss on his cheek, handing him the basket before he waved to her and began to head out, “I’ll make sure to tell grandma you said hi.”

“Oh, and Eiji!” Kirishima tilted his head as he listened, “Be careful of the wolf. Okay?”

“Yes Mother!” The redhead saluted and ran out, though he made sure to keep the basket in place before he accidentally messed up the delicious contents. It seemed his mother was prepared for this, however, as when he checked the inside, there was a plate of cookies securely wrapped with cling film for his first trip to the other side. Tucked beneath the sweet treats was a bag of his grandmother’s medicine. It seemed the postman, along with the other villagers, was too afraid to approach that side of the forest and decided to concede his deliveries to their house instead.

Obediently, Kirishima followed the dirt path as he hummed a small tune to himself, though at the same time he was tempted to snack on a cookie himself. He looked around at every structure with awe glistening in his eyes, admiring each indent of the trees that surrounded the path and the bright colours of the flowers that attracted his attention. By the time he was halfway through his journey, he came across an interesting bed of red flowers, and with his attention span equivalent to the patience of an Aries, he strayed from the dirt path for a closer look.

Though unsure of their particular species, upon closer inspection, he suspected them to be Azalea. “So pretty…” he gawked, then used a hand to gently cradle a flower between his fingers. Kirishima was tempted to even pick a few to show his mother, but at the same time felt sorry for them, for they would surely wither once out of their habitat. It was a shame that such pretty plants would normally succumb to such a fate.

Kirishima turned back and was about to take another step along the path, however, froze when he caught sight of a growling, glaring… boy? No, the spiked-up tail and wolf ears were a dead giveaway that this person was not completely human…

He had blonde hair sticking up in all sorts of ways, and bright red eyes which could kill. This stranger wore a moss-green coat with a white shirt underneath, paired with dark trousers and maroon ankle boots.


	2. The Misunderstood Wolf

“Oi,” Kirishima tilted his head as he heard the boy’s raspy voice, catching sight of the dribble dripping down his chin whilst he was in an interesting stance. His head was low with a slumped body posture as he flashed his fangs, “what brings you here?”

Instead of shaking in his boots, Kirishima found himself stifling a smile. Rather than the ferocious, man-eating wolf which he heard about in stories from the townspeople, this one reminded him more of just a rebellious teenage boy. Perhaps, even, his age. However, voicing that opinion out loud was sure to make the wolf pounce so he kept that to himself. “Is somethin’ funny to you?”

Kirishima shook his head, but instead put his hand out, making the wolf tilt his head with a small noise of confusion, “My name is Eijirou. Eijirou Kirishima y’know. What’s your name?”

 _‘Is this guy an idiot or something?'_ “Doesn’t matter. What’s in the basket?”

“Oh…” His grip on the basket tightened, “these… these are cookies for my grandma. And her medicine! I’m sorry but I can’t give any to you.”

“Too bad.” This time the boy had a cocky smirk on his face as he swapped his positioning to prepare for a fight. “I’ll let your old hag keep her meds but give me the food if you want to live.” Kirishima crossed his arms, open to the challenge.

“Fine by me!” He grinned, leaning the basket against a tree before returning to the path, beating his fists together.

“You really are mad. How are you not running away with your tail between your legs!?” The wolf fumed, brows furrowing together. His blood was boiling, and he couldn’t help but feel insulted at the fact that this other boy showed no signs of fear. There wasn’t even a quiver in his voice, nor could the wolf catch the scent of nervous sweat like he did with others.

“Well for one thing, I don’t have a tail.” The redhead retorted with a small laugh, “And you’re not nearly as scary as my ma when I forget to wash the dishes!”

The wolf found himself dumbfounded at this point, “You’re an idiot.” Shortly after, he was screaming something along the lines of, ‘DIE! DIE! DIE!’ while pushing off the ground with his feet to deliver a sharp, explosive punch to Kirishima’s stomach, who felt the wind leave him at the impact.

“Fucking hell…” Kirishima wheezed but managed to steady himself before pulling the wolf so his cheek met his fist. It wasn’t as strong as his, but it still had some impact as the wolf stumbled.

At this point, the blonde boy was dumbfounded that Kirishima was still standing. Though injured, he still had a grin on his face. In fact, it almost seemed like he was getting pumped up from this.

“How the fuck are you still standing?”

“Mwahaha! It’ll take more than that to knock me down.” Kirishima bellowed with his hands on his hips like a shounen antagonist. His speech was short, however, before he saw the boy sprinting towards him once more to deliver another punch. However, Little Red Riot Hood was prepared this time, and used his arms to block the impact. It still hurt like hell, but it was at least better than suffering his punch at point-blank.

Once blocked, the wolf growled and sent a kick to his side but let out a small yelp when he was grabbed and dragged to the ground. He clung on, and in a bolt of fury, both the boys were rolling across nature’s floor, wrestling and exchanging hits. Both became covered with dust as it was hard to even see a clear image of them as they practically fused to become one big mess.

A final, hard punch from the breathless wolf made our cheerful protagonist fly off of him and stumble into a thorny bush.

“OWIEEE!” Was what was heard, and the wolf believed that he was finished, sitting on the ground with a triumphant grin, before pushing himself off the ground and limping towards the basket. However, before he could even touch the basket, his ears twitched and turned in the direction of the thorny bush as it rustled, before the familiar red spikes appeared as Kirishima staggered out, cuts and dirt marking his skin although he acted like it was nothing.

“Do you never give up?”

“Do you!?”

“I could kill you y’know! Just a single bite and you’d be done for!”

“Well then why haven’t you!?” That question alone set a silence between them, the wolf blinking as he tilted his head. He was dumbfounded by this being for the thousandth time today.

 _‘This guy… is braver than all the others…’_ He let out a small huff, then turned away slightly, shaking the dust off himself. “Go run off to your old hag.” Kirishima raised an eyebrow, tilting his head as the wolf’s hostility seemed to die down.

“Katsuki Bakugou. Don’t forget it. This isn’t over, you hear? I’ll finish you off one day, but I figured this was too much grief for some crappy cookies.” At that moment, Bakugou began to walk off.

“Wait!”

“Can’t you leave me alone- huh?” Bakugou turned around then raised a suspicious eyebrow when he saw a cookie held in front of him.

“Here, have it! We can call it a draw.” Kirishima grinned, his expression bright despite the dirt on his cheeks. In fact, one could even say he was shining after that small shot of adrenaline. Bakugou stared at him, suspicion clear in his irises.

“You poison it?” Kirishima shook his head and persisted.

“It’s all yours.”

“You’re a stubborn one y’know.” Even so, the wolf quietly accepted his offer despite every one of his instincts telling him not to trust the red-headed bastard.

Despite the bruises and dirt, Kirishima was still smiling, “I’ll take that as a compliment. Now I gotta go. See ya around Katsuki, hopefully!” Afterwards, the boy ran off along the dirt path, still waving until he disappeared from the wolf’s sight.

“HEY! Who said you could use that name!?” Bakugou angrily protested, his face heating up slightly, but Kirishima’s grin never faltered. It was like he did not feel threatened by him at all, but that was impossible. Whenever he bumped into a random human, they would piss themselves just at the sight of his fangs.

He sank those very fangs into the cookie, leaning against a tree as his nose twitched at the bittersweet smell of the chocolate chips. “Hm…” he muttered with crumbs spilling out his mouth, “not bad.” It was finished all too quickly, however, and he found his stomach growling for more before he bumped the back of his head against the bark. That dumb grin once more showed itself in his imagination, making his eyes fly open, “Fucking IDIOT!” His yell was loud enough to scare a few birds into evacuating from the trees around him.

Meanwhile, Kirishima had finally reached his grandmother’s door. He used a key to unlock the door, as opposed to knocking, seeing as it was best for his grandmother to be resting whenever possible.

“Nana!” Kirishima practically sung, “Ma finally let me take over the deliveries today-”

“Eiji- oh my, what happened to your face!?” Kirishima blinked, as if he had only now noticed the stinging cuts and bruises.

Still, Kirishima was beaming as pride radiated off of him from completing his first of many trips, “I brought your cookies and medicine!” His grandma was immediately out of bed despite the recommendations to rest, fetching a box of medical supplies suited for simple injuries. It had a range of items including plasters, rubbing alcohol, bandages and tweezers. “Nana, I’m fine! I just had a little bit of a scuffle on the way.”

“You need to be more careful Eiji. Next thing you know I’ll have half of my favourite grandson the next time you visit.”

“I’m your only grandson…”

“That _you_ know of. Sit here, Eiji.” The redhead placed the basket on the table and sat down on a wooden chair. His eyes darted around the room, admiring the many pictures that hung on the walls and the many decorations, all while ignoring the stings on his arms and face as it was wiped clean and covered with plasters and bandages.

“Nana, anymore and my mom will never let me go outside again!”

“Who did you even get into a scuffle with? Did that Kaminari kid get you chased by a bear again? I swear-”

“Nana! That was one time. It was just the wolf.” This time, the grandma paused with her coddling.

“You met… the wolf?” It was almost as if she breathed a small sigh of relief with a hand on her chest, “So he gave you these bruises…”

“Yeah! Don’t worry, I don’t think he’s a bad wolf entirely. I can tell he’s strong, but he went easy on me! Our fight was basically a draw, and I gave him a cookie.” For this, Kirishima received some well-deserved head pats.

“I am glad someone else thinks so.” His grandma smiled as she put away the box, finished treating Kirishima.

“You’ve met him Nana? How? When? What happened?”

“Calm down Eiji. I’ll tell you, just let me sit down.”

“Of course!” Kirishima gently guided her back to bed, supporting him by letting her put an arm around his shoulder while they hobbled to the bed.

Once she was comfortable, Kirishima sat at her bedside, perked up and ready for a story.

“I learned that he wasn’t such a bad wolf last year. Remember when the pesky scammers magically stopped coming to my home? It’s all because of him. I guess at one point he noticed how annoying they were, so one day, at the usual time they would come to my home, I heard a racket outside my window. Took a little peek and wouldn’t you know! The wolf was screaming at them to stay away and threatening them with something along the lines of sinking his teeth into them and tearing their limbs apart?” Kirishima wasn’t sure how she managed to say that with such a calm tone, though she could probably tell that those threats were empty warnings… at most. He may have ended up biting one of their shoes off. “After that, I tried finding him whenever he passed by my house. I would try to invite him in to eat but it was really hard to gain any foundation of trust. Poor kid… I’ve not seen his mom or dad. He looks like he’s just been surviving on his own. I like to leave food out for him, and if a package arrives outside my door, it’s like I can always feel his presence nearby stopping other people from taking it!”

His grandma’s words were enough to push Kirishima to the edge emotionally, feeling a great deal more appreciation for the wolf, “I knew the tough guy crap was just an act.”  
“It’s hard to blame him. He has to survive that way. It’s hard for him though because it makes people too scared to interact or be nice to him. That’s why I’m glad he has the chance to not be alone anymore. You are a kind boy, Eiji.”

Kirishima beamed at the praise, then figured he should start heading back home before his mother believed he was kidnapped by the ‘big, bad wolf’. Of course, upon his return, he was immediately interrogated about his plasters and bandages.

“Ma, Ma... Ma- MA, MA STOP! YOU’LL KILL ME AT THIS RATE!” Kirishima was running around the kitchen while his mother shouted at him and threatened him with a spatula. It was possible that she was the reason he was so ‘tough’. Just as he was tipping over the edge of the counter, he gave in, “I’m sorry, I’m sorry. I’ll tell you what happened! JUST PUT DOWN THE SPATULA!”

His mother narrowed her eyes, a fist on her hip as she narrowed her eyes while waving the spatula around, “What, this little thing?” She tossed it behind her and it landed in the pot, causing some hot liquid to splash onto the floor.

“Okay look… don’t freak out, okay?” Kirishima took a deep breath, “I ran into the wolf. Y’know the one all the other townspeople like tellin’ me stories of?”

“You… you… met… the wolf… oh my god.”

“MOM!” The redhead had to catch his poor mother after her eyes began to roll to the back of her head, coming face-to-face with only the whites of her sclera. He facepalmed, before trying to shake her back into consciousness. Though, a small part of him was glad that she at least wasn’t trying to kill him for being dumb enough to get into a fight with the wolf whose mention alone could make fear travel up people’s spines.

After a few moments of being fanned, her sanity eventually returned. Kirishima let her sit down at the table and handed her a glass of water.

“No more. No more delivering.” She managed, catching her breath.

“But Ma! You can’t do that!”

“Yes, I can, and I will, Eijirou. If you ran into him once, it’s more likely to happen again. I don’t want you to get hurt again!”

“It isn’t as bad as it looks! The thorn bush did the most work, really.”

“You’ve got bandages on your arm and plasters on your face!” The woman wailed in protest, making our her son flinch. “You are not making any more deliveries and that is that!”

Kirishima sighed, his fists curled with absolute determination. He fell silent for a moment as he stared at the floor, as if preparing some sort of ‘manly’ speech to deliver to his mother and convince her to let him go. But he wouldn’t do that, righ-

“Ma,” Oh God, “from the moment you told me I could finally take over the deliveries, I was happy because it told me that I was finally of age to handle some actual responsibility! I am not saying my chores are not part of my responsibility, but for once in my life I felt really MANLY being able to help out Nana. You may be worried because of these scratches but they’re NOTHING compared to the importance of this job to me. If- if you take it away, you’re taking away one of the manly responsibilities away from… your little Eiji.”

Hearing that nickname made his mother tear up, putting a hand over her heart. “That fight was one of the most thrilling experiences I’ve had. I want to be able to deliver goods not just for grandma, but for anyone you need me to! So, what I’m saying is… please let me continue doing deliveries! Pretty please!”

Well, that was certainly a strange way to finish.

This time it was the mother’s turn to sigh, wiping a hand down her face, “Fine.” Kirishima’s ear twitched, unsure whether he heard correctly. “I’ll let you continue. But! One condition: no more fighting that wolf. He is very dangerous. I don’t want you interacting with him.”

This one condition put a damper on Kirishima’s spirit. After their first meeting, he had a bigger urge to talk to him again. The very thought of ignoring his presence after such a passionate encounter… it made Kirishima’s heart sore.

But he would have to listen to his mother’s wishes no matter what, right?


	3. It's Seasoning Not Poison!

The following morning felt like a spy mission. Kirishima had packed a few leftovers of fried chicken from the night before, along with some groceries the grandma requested from the marketplace.

"I'm off!"

"Remember, no wolf!"

"Yes Ma'am!" But the reality was very much different.

In fact, Kirishima searched high and low during his journey for the wolf. "MR. WOOOOOLF!" His voice rang through the trees and successfully scared the wildlife away, but there was no sign of the wolf, not even a menacing growl. _'Damn...'_ However, that was not enough to deter the boy from his efforts. At one point, he decided to try using his real name. "KAAAATSUKIIIIII!"

This time, a rustling from the right caught his attention, making Kirishima immediately leap in that direction, only to land once more in a thorn bush.

"Holy fuck, what is with you and thorn bushes?" Kirishima looked up from his tangled state, meeting the face of a disgruntled Bakugou.

"...Hi." For some reason, just being able to get a better look at him had Kirishima tripping over his words, being a bit bashful in the moment. He grinned up at him, "Wanna help me up, maybe?" Bakugou rolled his eyes, but nevertheless grabbed Kirishima's arm and pulled him out the bush to land against the dirt with a thud, "Thank you."

"Any reason why you were making such a racket?"

"I was looking for you obviously!"

"No shit. What for?" Kirishima noticed that the wolf still had cuts and scratches littered across his tanned skin, making the boy wince. A bit of guilt pricked him, considering Bakugou did not seem to have the option to actually treat his wounds.

However, he snapped himself out of his little observation to recall the reason why he had so feverishly gone searching for the grumpy wolf in the first place. He reached into his basket and pulled out a small container, wrapped up securely. Bakugou narrowed his eyes, his nose twitching as he attempted to identify what could be inside but was blocked by the scent of plastic.

"Here, it's chicken. From last night!" Kirishima beamed, but Bakugou did not feel like coming much closer.

"How do I know it isn't poisoned?" He asked, eyes glued to the mysterious container.

"C'mon dude, what reason would I have to poison you?" Bakugou looked at the bandages and plasters on the boy's skin.

"I hurt you." Was his matter-of-fact response, but the other shook his head.

"Something you have yet to learn about me is that I am an honourable guy! I think the manliest way to defeat someone is by using your pure fists. Poisoning someone when they least expect it is just cowardly and not manly at all!" The wolf, admittedly, was a bit puzzled by the human's passion on this subject. Still, from the first impression, this human did not exactly seem to have a malicious bone inside him. Something about his grin was just... honest.

Kirishima sat himself down against a tree and waved the wolf over with his hand. Bakugou rolled his eyes but followed after him anyway. There was an undeniable gurgling in his stomach as he was yet to eat that day. Not that he would admit it, but finding and stealing food was a bit of a challenge for him... sometimes.

The male handed it over to him, and looked way too excited about giving some leftover chicken away, "What's the catch?" Kirishima face palmed.

 _'He not only packs a punch, but he's intelligent and cautious...'_ Kirishima felt a spot of envy towards the wolf, but still continued insisting that he had not 'contaminated' the food in any sort of way, unless by contaminated he meant seasoned. "Do you want me to try a piece with you so I can prove it to you?" That seemed enough to pacify the wolf, who nodded silently before tearing the plastic wrap off and opening the container. He handed him a piece and then picked one up for himself. Kirishima felt the wolf's scarlet eyes observing him with a focused gaze. It was hard to recall another time he felt so scrutinized aside from when his mother would interrogate him. Kirishima shrugged and casually popped the piece of meat in his mouth, chewing it and swallowing. Rather than looking sickly, Bakugou noticed, Kirishima seemed to utterly enjoy the taste.

Bakugou shook his head, _'It's just meat...'_ he thought to himself, before he followed in tasting the piece of chicken once satisfied with the lack of poisonous symptoms from the human. His eyes widened slightly at the taste of a salty, herby concoction. He was a bit perplexed by the extra flavour, and there was only one explanation for it... "YOU DID POISON IT!" Kirishima's face dropped.

"DOES IT TASTE THAT BAD TO YOU!?"

"NO! BUT IT DEFINITELY DOESN'T TASTE NORMAL!"

"IT'S NOT POISONED! ALL MY MOM HAS ADDED TO IT IS SEASONING!" Perhaps Little Red Riding Hood had given his intelligence too much credit.

"Oh fuck off I knew that. This just doesn't taste normal."

"Sure you did. Anyway, does it taste nice?"

"Any meat is good enough for me." Bakugou said in response, but the smallest compliment was still able to make the redhead smile.

"I'm glad you like it!"

"Hey- I didn't say that-"

"Well I hope you continue to enjoy it Katsuki." Kirishima began to stand up as Bakugou continued nibbling on more pieces of chicken. "I'm sorry it's not much, but it's at least a start! I'm not just going to deliver goods to my grandma, but you too! Okay?"

"I didn't ask for that. What- you want me to be in debt to you or some shit, so I do whatever you want as a slave? Not happening!" Kirishima had to pause for a moment, questioning where the wolf had concocted such an idea.

"Well, no... but there is one thing I wanted to ask of you..." Kirishima leaned against the tree trunk while standing up, feeling his nerves beginning to twist uncomfortably. "I don't really know many other people near my age. I don't exactly have a lot of friends because my mom is a tad... overprotective. So, Katsuki, would you like to be my friend?"

The question left Kirishima's mouth a little dry as he was forced to wait for Bakugou to fully process what he had just asked of him, almost as if he was surprised that he wasn't asked to work as a guard dog or something. As many moments passed, the embarrassment within him kept building up.

"Your... friend?" Bakugou finally spoke up. Kirishima nodded. It was a peculiar request. There were many questions plaguing the wolf's mind to try and figure out the human's intentions. Did being friends mean the same thing between humans as it did wolves? For wolves, it meant camaraderie. Surely it meant the same for humans. Or maybe there was still a catch, like Kirishima using his fearful reputation to scare others into doing his bidding. His heart seemed too pure for that though. There was also the possibility that the whole act in itself was fake, but Bakugou didn't smell any lies. Bakugou was worried that if this human clung to him, it would just be a troublesome addition to his otherwise peaceful life of stealing food and scaring the unsuspecting public. When Bakugou looked down at the food, however, he realised that keeping Kirishima around could possibly lead to more food. That would be a good excuse for staying 'friends' with the human.

"One condition."

"Really?"

"Bring me more of this."

"Chicken?"

"Whatever is available! Food is food." Bakugou growled, and Kirishima put his hands up in surrender.

"Okay, okay dude! You got it. Well, I'm going to go visit my grandma now, okay? I'll see you later, Katsuki." He grinned, waving goodbye while running off.

"He's too damn friendly..." Bakugou shook his head disapprovingly, continuing to stuff his mouth with chicken, "fuck, this is actually nice." He mumbled, drawn into his thoughts as he recalled the kindness from our redheaded protagonist. 'Being friends was his true intention, huh?'

Kirishima arrived at his grandmother's and insisted on helping her put the groceries away despite her protests.

"Eiji it's fine seriously. Nana's a big girl!"

"And I'm a big boy! I'll help Nana, just get your rest." His grandma eventually conceded.

"You get your hard headedness from your mother," she sighed, "at least let me make you a drink. I have black tea."

"Oh sure! Thanks Nana." The grandma smiled and began boiling some water while Kirishima put a bag of flour into the cupboard, then stored a carton of milk in the fridge. He even began talking to the flowers that sat on the windowsill, soaking in the gentle rays of the sun. As every day passed, she thanked whatever higher power that resided in the clouds for giving her such a caring and diligent grandson.

"Have you spoken to the wolf yet?"

"Oh, yes! His full name is Katsuki Bakugou by the way. I actually learned that right after our fight. Ma was really worried for me after I came back with bandages, but I managed to convince her to let me continue delivering. I snuck some leftover chicken out to give him. But he still had injuries from yesterday and..." Kirishima trailed off as his eyes landed on the box of bandages, plasters and an assortment of ointments and such to help treat minor injuries. "Nana..."

She smiled, "Yes, you may use my nifty box of supplies to help Bakugou. I thought your mother had some though."

Kirishima scratched the back of his head, a sheepish grin on his face, "I kind of didn't realise how hurt he could be until I saw him again today... maybe a small part of me was convinced that he would have super healing or something. Wolves are amazing after all."

"I suppose that is a fair judgement... but he is still a young wolf. He is around your age, y'know. That might be part of the reason why I immediately felt the need to care about him... his healing will probably get better as he grows older." Kirishima nodded, exploring the supplies inside the medical box.

"Uhh... Nana?"

"Yes, Eiji?"

"Could you teach me about some of this stuff? My memory's a bit rusty..."

"Of course," She put a cup of hot tea on a coaster in front of him, then spent a few minutes on each part explaining their use and informed him about how to wrap a bandage properly. Kirishima nodded with each instruction eagerly, following to the best of his ability. By the end of his visit, he was excitedly running back down the path home.

 _'Tomorrow I'll try to patch him up-'_ his thoughts were interrupted by the sight of the wolf sleeping against the tree where he had left him. "Aw..." Kirishima stared at him for a moment, noticing the way his features softened when he was asleep. He didn't look nearly as intimidating without that scowl on his face. He wondered why Bakugou had slept at this particular spot, expecting him to have run off after finishing his food. As Kirishima carefully approached the sleeping boy, he noticed the (empty) container in his clutches. He put a hand over his mouth to keep himself from bursting out in laughter, but it seemed even his slightly audible breaths were enough to make the wolf's ears twitch. Before he knew it, a pair of angry red rubies were staring at him. Though at first on guard, he calmed down slightly when he recognised the dumb human staring at him. "Oh, um, hi!" For some reason, Kirishima found himself tongue tied, as the wolf peered up at him, tilting his head curiously.

"What do you want, Shitty Hair?" Kirishima blinked, wondering if Bakugou was actually referring to him.

"Shitty Hair?"

"Yeah, you." Well, that confirmed it.

"Well, I, uh..." Kirishima's gaze landed back on his basket with some borrowed medical supplies, "Grandma taught me how to help... wounds, like yours, man."

"Man? I'm a wolf." The boy huffed in response, still trying to understand what the human was saying, until his ears twitched and Kirishima's jumbled words finally sunk in. "Do not. Touch. Me."

"Are you sure?" Kirishima asked, "I know I just learned but really, I insist. I just wanted to do this to apologise to you for getting into that scuffle earlier."

"Scuffle?"

"Yeah, I promise I'll do my best not to hurt you. We just need to clean your skin up a bit, put on some bandages and we'd be don-" In the middle of his explanation, Kirishima made the mistake of trying to reach out towards Bakugou. The wolf's irises dilated while flashing an intimidating pair of fangs, a growl erupting from his throat. He was purely acting on instinct – it was clear by the concoction of fire and paranoia in those red irises and his hairs standing up on its ends before he threw his arm towards Kirishima's arm and left three, bleeding gashes on his forearm. After the adrenaline began to dissipate, Bakugou sat against the tree with heavy breaths leaving him, blinking as he calmed himself down.

"You... you shouldn't have tried to-"

The human boy was stunned to say the least, blinking before looking down at the injury. It stung, most definitely, but it did not stop him from turning back to the wolf with a lack of fear in his expression.

"Sorry bro, you're right. You weren't ready."

"Oi, why aren't you running back home? Terrified? You're bleeding for fuck's sake but for some reason you're looking at me like... like..."

"Like what?"

"Like I'm not a monster!"

"But you're not a monster." Was Kirishima's blunt statement, looking almost dumbfounded with what Bakugou was insinuating, "You're a just a boy! Just like me!"

"But I'm a wolf too."

"Yeah, and that's awesome!" He grinned, then tried to lean back on his arm but had seemed to quickly forgotten that it would not end well. Kirishima hissed before sitting back up, "Damn, you really did a number on me!"

"You don't have to put on a brave front y'know."

"I'm... I'm not! It does hurt! Like ouch. But it's not as bad as it looks. Then again, mom did say that my freakishly high pain tolerance has been present since I was just a kid."

"You're still a kid." Bakugou scoffed.

"Hey! You look just about my age! Huh?" The boy stopped as he watched Bakugou stretch his arm out slowly, avoiding eye contact.

"Are you gonna keep starin' or actually do something about it?" Kirishima smiled at the boy's unhappy pout, it was cute somehow. Before the wolf could change his mind, he got to work on the boy's scratches. Bakugou's furrowed brows deepened when he felt the sting of alcohol on cotton pads against his marks, but his pride refused to let him even pass out a small whimper. On the other hand, the human had full focus on his mind, keeping the memory his grandma's teachings close to him.

This human was most definitely unusual. His scent reminded the wolf of pine, his hair was bright red which he had never seen before, and most extraordinarily, looked at him as if he were a friend – not a monster – just a friend.

Bakugou stayed silent as the human continued his rough work, but it was clear that it was a product of hard work, and he had no reason to criticise the boy for that. His gaze stayed stuck to the ground, looking anywhere but at the human, even as he felt his face being cleaned.

"Okay... done!" Kirishima announced, not even conscious of the fact that he was cupping the boy's face with both his hands as he checked his work. "Very nice, very nice." However, he had not expected the wolf to look up at him with his red eyes, looking more relaxed than grumpy.

"Finally finished huh?" The human let go immediately, making the wolf stumble forward slightly before he sat up and shook his head, then put a hand over the plaster on his cheek.

"I- uh, yeah! I know it's a little bit messy, but I did my best. Thanks for trusting me though bro." Meanwhile, the human was trying to figure out why his face was heating up, beating a fist against his chest as he tried to calm down. Kirishima attempted to stand up, "I should get going now, Ma's probably worried as hell since I'm two minutes later than usual."

"Wait." Bakugou grabbed his hand without thinking, and pulled him back, "Let me do shit for you now."

"What?" Kirishima watched as Bakugou began running his tongue against the boy's wounds, "WHA- WHA- what are you doing!?"

"Shut up," he muttered while continuing to lick the dry blood off him, "I'm helping." Kirishima felt his face heating up at the very sight of it, not to mention the warm feeling against his skin.

"Why don't you try... I don't know... using the rubbing alcohol?" Upon hearing this, Bakugou conceded. It seemed the human was a bit taken off guard by the action so he decided to do it his way so he would stop flailing around like an idiot. From there, Little Red Riot Hood began instructing the wolf on how to treat his wounds step by step just like his grandma. "Yeah, just wipe the pad gently against it until the wound looks clean enough... you're not too bad! Ouch! Gentle, gentle!"

After a few minutes, Kirishima was successfully wrapped up by none other than the wolf of all the citizens' nightmares. "Thanks, you're a great buddy to me Katsuki!"

"Buddy?"

"Yeah, like a friend? In fact, wouldn't you like to be my best friend? Your fighting skills are impressive, and I'd love to practise sparring with you." Kirishima stood up and began patting the dirt off his trousers, "Anyway, I'd better get going. Thanks for everything, Katsuki!"

"Whatever, Shitty Hair..." It was not the nicest of nicknames, but Kirishima took it like it was God's word, giving him a firm pat on the head before running back home, basket in hand.

Bakugou watched after him, putting a hand over the spot where Kirishima slammed his palm down, "Best friend, huh?" He muttered, and as the sun began to set, his tail began to sway ever so slightly.


	4. Shorts or Skirt, I'll Still Fight You!

As the weeks passed by, it became a daily routine for Kirishima to visit the wolf in the forest, giving him a variety of food that ranged from meat to even baked foods. Along the way, the redhead found out that Bakugou's particular favourite was his mother's spicy chicken curry. In fact, the wolf really liked spice.

At one point, Kirishima even found himself bringing his own lunch so that he could eat alongside the wolf and ramble on about different topics and issues he felt like discussing during that day. Although Bakugou preferred to act like he did not involve himself much in human affairs, he still was able to make more than a few good points through his wise opinions. It was fascinating to the human to say the least.

His updates about the wolf to his grandma were always filled with excitement, with his grandma lending an ear to her animated grandson's gushing about his new friend. "Yeah, he even lets me call him my best friend! Can you believe that? And, and sometimes, I see his tail wag. Just a little, but y'know, it's still amazing! He's amazing!"

"Is he well? Be sure that you are not just feeding him junk food now." She'd softly advise him whenever there was a break between his speeches, feeling her heart soar at the notion that the little wolf would not be lonely anymore. Kirishima's grandma also adored the way his eyes seemed to light up when he would babble on about Bakugou. His red eyes seemed to gleam brighter with each visit, and at the same time – amidst his gushing – his grandma began to suspect that there was a new kind of feeling introducing itself as it began to bloom inside her grandson's heart.

"Hey Katsuki! I've got sushi for you to try today!" Bakugou blinked in the usual direction of the voice, his ears twitching as he cocked his head at the sight of Kirishima. It was inevitable that the human would visit him, by now he simply told himself that it would be too difficult at this point to tell him to go away, and that he is the reason why he can get consistent meals. That was the only reason he kept him around. It wasn't as if... he genuinely enjoyed his company and dumb rambling, right?

However, as always, his tail seemed to betray him. He didn't have much control over the way it would instinctively begin to wag when he heard Kirishima's familiar shout or would sway even harder once the particular human was in view. What was even more troublesome was when the stupid redhead would notice it, "Hey! You seem happy to see me." He would grin, which was a dead giveaway that he was happy to see him too.

"Don't become full of yourself! It's an instinct thing! It only happens because I'm excited for the food. The food! Not you." He crossed his arms, brows deeply furrowed all while his tail was still wagging side to side as Kirishima began passing him his food. "Sushi... I've heard of it. Sounds disgusting."

"Don't knock it 'till you try it! Try it with the soy sauce."

"You even brought soy sauce? A bit over excessive don't you think?"

"It completes it!" The human insisted, using a pair of chopsticks to pick up a piece, dip it in soy sauce before reaching towards the wolf. Bakugou stared at it for a moment as the rolled-up rice and duck approached him before he parted his lips and gently took it from the pair of chopsticks. His eyes closed for a moment, savouring the flavour as he tried to understand the salty flavour of the nori, before opening his eyes and dropping his expression when he realised what he had done.

"What're you staring at?"

"Nothing! Really, nothing. It's just... nice to see you enjoy the food, y'know?" This time, Bakugou's cheeks began to turn rosy, shaking his head as he continued muttering.

"Just shut up."

"You want me to stop feeding you then?"

"You started it! I'll kill you-"

"There there, it was a simple question. Here, say 'ahh'!" It seemed that the boy had grown used to his coarse way of speaking, being able to calm him down by putting his hand on his head. Bakugou was quick to comply, enjoying the new taste he had discovered as he chewed the sushi with a habitual slowness.

Meanwhile, Kirishima was slowly going crazy over how 'lovey-dovey' the scene was, especially with the boy's relaxed and happy expressions just from food. He noticed the way Bakugou's eyes softened when he tasted something he liked, along with the way his cheeks looked cute and round. The redhead was astonished at the fact that he looked completely at peace as long as he had delicious food in his mouth. _'He ate it... he really ate it.'_ It was possible to say that our protagonist had gained a little crush on the wolf, while the other boy was a bit oblivious to his own feelings about him (or as one may say, stubborn), being more focused on the food delivered to him.

With Kirishima's next visit, everything was the same besides one extra bold move he had decided to make. That morning, he left his usual attire in the closet and instead settled on a red dress with a white, frilly apron on the front. It had a skirt that had a length ending just above his knees, which was not the most conventional for young males. Kirishima only wore this particular outfit at home, and his mother did not mind. In fact, she was one of his avid supporters so that he could be more confident in himself. She was happy to see her son confident enough to walk outside with it on for once even if it was just to his grandmother's house. If anyone had anything negative to say to him, they would definitely have to meet her more serious side.

"Have a nice day, Eiji."

"Thanks Ma! See you later!" He replied with a grin, waving before running towards the woodland path. He had started the day with such valour, but he found that the closer he got to their usual hangout spot, the smaller and slower his strides became. Different thoughts began clouding his mind. Things like, _'What if he judges me? What if he doesn't want to be friends anymore because I'm weird? This isn't normal...'_ His legs carried him to the familiar spot, his knuckles beginning to pale with the tight grip he had on the basket's handles.

The wolf perked up once Kirishima arrived, looking down at the basket and then at his skirt. He noticed the way the human stiffened slightly when his gaze lasted on the material for more than a second, so he simply looked away as normal and patted the spot next to him.

"What's there to eat today?"

"Rice balls!"

"Eh? Sounds boring."

"Since when did you get so spoiled?" Kirishima teased the other as he took his spot next to him. He began to relax a little more as Bakugou had returned to normal. "They're not boring. My Ma is very good at seasoning them! And they have fillings so don't judge a book by its cover. There's beef, tuna, teriyaki chicken..." The boy didn't have to say much more before Bakugou began to search through the basket and gorge on the contents inside. Kirishima crossed his legs as he watched him, a small smile spreading on his face.

"How does your mom cook so much?" The wolf asked, but he looked far from disgruntled by it with his stuffed cheeks. In fact, one may say he looked almost grateful that Kirishima's mother cooked so much.

"Well, she does love cooking," The human replied, picking up his own share of the bounty, "I've always loved meat especially as a teen, so a lot of her dishes contain meat for me. She's a very headstrong woman who definitely doesn't want me to starve. Also, because she's a family-type of person... she naturally makes enough to serve a family. We at least have plenty to give to you and my grandma."

Bakugou looked down as Kirishima brought up his grandma. He remembered the gentle wave of her hand towards him before he would scurry away. The wolf noticed that the pair seemed to have similarly warm eyes. He wasn't too sure, however, why he found himself trusting this human much quicker.

They continued to eat with only a comfortable silence between them. By now, they had slumped against each other while their conversation subjects would lazily drift from one topic to another. Neither of the two seemed to mind where the conversation went.

"I have a question."

"Yeah?"

"What's with the skirt?" And just like that, the comfortable silence was drowned out by the tension in the air. Kirishima scratched the back of his head, refusing to meet the eyes of the other, while his mind raced at all the possible answers. A part of him was even tempted to say that he had accidentally worn it out but didn't realise until it was too late. "Oi. You're beginning to sweat."

"I... well, I..." Amidst the boy's panic, he blinked when he felt something warm against his cheek. He looked over to notice the wolf's fingers poking against his cheek. Bakugou tilted his head, his eyes looking more curious now rather than annoyed.

"Look, you were a weirdo to me already."

"Hey!"

"I'm just saying," Bakugou propped his knees, "after everything, it's not like something like this would change the way I think about you..."

After that, the silent realisation was so poignant that even the gentle breeze making the grass sway could be noticed. Kirishima let those words sink in, a small smile spreading as he finally opened his mouth with a calmer heartbeat.

"I don't normally wear this out, but... I just felt like it, honestly." Kirishima spoke, massaging the hem of his skirt between his index finger and thumb, "But it doesn't make me any less of a man... I think. A long time ago I learned that a lot of people disagree with me, but my Ma doesn't care, thankfully. It might be why she is quite protective... I'm one of the only ones of her family left. I... decided to wear this when visiting you because we're close and I feel comfortable around you, y'know? But then last minute I just started getting nervous because I wasn't sure what you would think." Bakugou had become quiet, making Kirishima turn to him to get a good look at any sign of discomfort. "Well, do you think any differently of me now?"

Bakugou crossed his legs and threw his hands up, feigning exasperation, "Fuck if I care about what you wear. It won't change the fact that we're close, you hear. So, don't go chickening out on me before I punch you. I don't care if you're in a skirt, a dress, a shitty corset, I'll fight you." Kirishima found himself tearing up slightly, gripping the fabric beneath his fingers before pulling his friend into a firm hug. The wolf let out a small yelp at first as he was caught off guard, but quickly settled when he felt the arms embracing him so tightly. It felt like being wrapped in a ball of warmth, strength, and... relief. Once the initial shock was over, Bakugou awkwardly placed his arms around Kirishima's torso, trying to find a comfortable way to hold him but soon enough noticing that any response would make the human happy.

Kirishima finally felt like he had found a friend to accept him fully for who he was. Even though the wolf had an abrasive character, the other boy had never felt more grateful that there was at least one person who he could tell pretty much everything, other than family.

"Thank you."


	5. Market 'Date'

The next time they met, Kirishima had arranged a meeting with the wolf early in the morning. It was a day where there was a remarkable lack of clouds while the sun was greeting the town with friendly beams. "Katsuki! Ma wants me to go to the town today to buy food. Hopefully, meat is on sale. Do you want to come?"

"Hell no."

"Why not!?"

"They'll just run away as soon as they catch sight of me." Kirishima frowned. But he understood Bakugou's mindset. For over a year he had heard about the 'big, bad wolf' that lurked in the forest and would attack if they smelled fear, but the reality could not have been anymore different. The human suspected that the callous mistreatment of the villagers themselves added to Bakugou's defensive mindset.

"But I like spending time with you, and I might not to visit you at our usual time later since I don't need to visit my grandma." The wolf's furrowed brows softened slightly, but he kept his arms crossed, refusing to look up because he knew damn well that the human would have that sad look on his face that he hated. "C'mon, if anyone tries to pick on you, I'll give them a piece of my mind!"

"Idiot! I don't need someone coming to my rescue. I could kick the asses of everyone in that damn town with my pinky." He raised the mentioned finger to emphasise his point. "I just..." he let out a sigh, "I can handle what they think about me, but you don't want to get a bad reputation for letting me be close to you."

"Oh, I see. You're worried about me." Bakugou was determined to argue against that fact, but upon reiterating his previous statement in his mind, he realised that he did in fact want to look out for him. It was a little difficult to come to terms with it though.

"So what if I don't want you to become some sort of social pariah?"

Kirishima grinned, "Wow, that's a big word."

"Shut up." Bakugou buried his face with his hands and shook his head, but the human gently pulled his hands away from his face.

"Sorry for teasing," he still had a warm smile on his face, "but join me? Please?" _Badump._

"But then you'll be ostracized."

"I thought a lot after that day I showed up in a skirt. Honestly? I couldn't care less what the others think about me if it's just because I spend time with you. I realised that it wouldn't be very manly of me if I let other people's thoughts control my actions." He declared, "You taught me that being different does not mean you should stop being yourself. Katsuki, you inspire me and I won't let myself be scared to be seen with you! That wouldn't be very manly." In one courageous swoop, Kirishima took the boy's hand in his, and began walking off pointing to the distance as if he were going to show Bakugou the whole world.

Wrong story, Little Red.

For some reason, despite at first being disturbed by the sudden move, Bakugou did not feel like pulling away. As he watched the ball of enthusiasm in front of him leading the way, his lips curled into a small smile and he tightened his grip on the boy without another word as his tail continued to flicker from side to side.

As the wolf had predicted, the moment any human caught sight of Bakugou 'looming' behind Kirishima, they would quickly dart to the sides, or 'subtly' push their children back into their homes.

"See? I told you they would..." Bakugou would begin to grumble only to be quickly shut down when Kirishima would turn around and repeat the same thing over and over again.

"I don't care. You're worth more than some other people's fear!" The wolf shook his head as his eyes trailed back down to their hands joined together. He found himself thinking that surely this kind of treatment was not normal.

"But do you have to... do this?" He questioned, making Kirishima raise an eyebrow. "I'm not a little kid... it's embarrassing." Bakugou hated the way his heart immediately sank when a disappointed look etched itself onto the human's face.

"Does it embarrass you to walk around holding my hand?"

"Well, yeah... maybe. Never mind. Just stop looking at me like that! If you're not gonna care about what people think then I won't either!" He suddenly yelled and made some bold strides with an even tighter grip on Kirishima's hand. However, his immediate shout managed to make even more people run for their lives in case the wolf had gotten in the mood for a few live snacks.

"I have no idea what they're so scared of..." Kirishima mumbled, but went to a stall anyway, "hey Mister!"

The vendor turned around, having recognised Kirishima's voice before his face fell into a grim expression when he saw the canine alongside him, "Oh... Kiri. Who's your friend here?" He asked, doing his best to preserve his smile under Bakugou's steely gaze. In reality, the wolf hadn't been able to get this close to the shops before, so was looking at all the things in front of him, including the shopkeeper as if trying to take photographs with his eyes. In this case, the shopkeeper specialised in fruit and vegetable produce.

As their conversation continued, the wolf simply began to zone out and think, _'This isn't meat...'_

"His name's Bakugou!" Kirishima beamed, "I just need a few bunches of garlic and onions. Possibly fruit too. Ma's running out of cooking ingredients." He looked around the baskets of different produce, then held up two different bunches of garlic and observing them closely, his eyebrows knitted together. After a small pause, he perked up and drew Bakugou out of his observation, "Hey, you've got a good nose, right?"

"Yeah?"

"Smell this! Which one smells better?" Bakugou looked less than pleased by the task he was given, but his sour expression didn't stop Kirishima from holding one bunch of garlic to his nose. 

"It stinks."

"Alright then how about this one?"

"It also stinks."

"Katsuki!"

"What the fuck do you want me to say? They both stink and hurt my eyes." Bakugou raised his voice and made the shopkeeper flinch before ducking behind his stall.

"Mister?" The human quickly showed concern, while Bakugou took a peek behind the stall.

"P-Please! Don't hurt me! I have a w-wife, and kids!"

"Mister he's not like that!" Kirishima defended, putting a hand atop Bakugou's fluffy spikes, "I know he can make some scary expressions, but he really would not hurt humans unless they did something to him in the first place. He doesn't exactly have a taste for human meat after all." Bakugou nodded in agreement, but the shopkeeper was still a mess of jitters.

Kirishima scratched the back of his head. His main dilemma was how to show other people the wolf was a total sweetheart. Perhaps not in those exact words. Then people would think he was actually crazy. Perhaps it was better to let the humans slowly get used to the wolf's presence, then slowly but surely, they would come to appreciate his true self, right?

When the shopkeeper finally calmed down and stood back up, Kirishima was in the middle of making Bakugou smell a whole bunch of produce. The wolf showed annoyance, but on a peculiar note still complied with the human.

"Acidic. Stinks. No. Smells like a pepper." His replies were less than eager, but it didn't hinder the redhead's excited smile. After a while, Kirishima managed to pick out the produce he needed, and the shopkeeper packed them up before handing it to him and bidding goodbye with a shaky smile. The man let out a breath he didn't realise he was holding once their backs were turned, but tilted his head as he watched Kirishima stretch an open hand to the wolf with grabby motions, before the wolf shook his head and slipped his hand into the open space.

"Next stop- meat!" Kirishima cheered, the wolf's tail wagging when it was mentioned.

~*~*~

After their day of exploring the different stalls and meeting new people, Little Red Riot Hood returned home.

"Ma! I bought the groceries!" He grinned and put the bags on the table. His mother began to put away the groceries but noticed the fact that her son was radiating more happiness than usual.

"Did something nice happen today?"

"I went shopping with a friend of mine." Kirishima grinned.

"Oh, a little date in the town?"

Immediately, Kirishima spluttered, "Ma! It wasn't like that."

"Sure it wasn't. Who was your 'friend' then? Boy or girl?"

Kirishima scratched the back of his head, averting his gaze for a moment, "A boy... his name is Bakugou."

"Aw, cute! As in 'explosion'?"

"Sure..."

"Perhaps that makes him boisterous and energetic. I'm not too surprised you would manage to make friends with him then. You two sound good together, just don't get yourselves into too much mischief, okay?" His mother said with a teasing tone.

"What do you mean 'good together'? I told you, we're not-"

"I meant as friends." While his mother was not-so-subtly giggling to herself, Kirishima was reduced to a mess of grumbles and mumbles as he went back to his room. He went to his window and looked at the sunset, thinking about his wolf companion with a wandering gaze.

~*~*~

Unfortunately, not all of the townspeople were very understanding of Kirishima's new 'friend'. The more the fear spread, the quicker gossip circled around the townspeople, to the point in which even Kirishima's mother heard these rumours. Of course, at first, she did not believe he was actually frolicking around with a werewolf. She thought – or hoped – that it was just a nickname.

It may not have been the best demonstration of trust, but on her son's next trip, she decided to trail behind... just to make sure he was safe. At least, that was what she had convinced herself.

She waited a few moments after bidding her son goodbye with a kiss on the forehead, before getting a cloak and quietly following his route. Everything went smoothly at first, Kirishima's mother just watching her sweet son enjoy the sights and sounds of nature around him. As she snuck around the forest, she began to notice a shadowy figure doing... something similar. Except the fact that she noticed his ears (covered in light blonde hairs) pointed forward and... tail. If he ever flashed a grin, she imagined she would see a pair of deadly fangs.

 _'My baby!'_ Was her immediate thought. Even though she felt she would be too weak to fight a wolf (as young as he looked), she was still prepared to jump in and pry the creature away from Kirishima if he ever dared to attack.

However, the attack was yet to come as she watched her son enter the grandma's home, hearing a small sample of his cheerful greeting before the door closed behind him swiftly. To her surprise, the young wolf sat down by a nearby tree, but she did not peel her eyes away until later on, when her son bid goodbye to his grandma. It was a fairly quick visit, and she looked up to the sky to check that it was still daytime, _'Were his visits always finished this early? I always thought he just liked spending time with her...'_

At least, that was what she assumed as Kirishima always seemed to return at sunset when he would visit her. At the same time, she noticed the wolf perk up and return to his original position. His tail wagged ever so slightly, and it was enough for her to feel the need to suppress a giggle. Then Kirishima approached the wolf with a grin.

"Hey Katsuki! Didn't keep you waiting for too long, right? Y'know, Nana wouldn't mind letting you come in for some food as well..."

"Shut up Shitty Hair, I'm fine... you don't need to worry about that." The wolf stiffly replied, "Let's go already."

"Impatient as ever." Kirishima teased, then walked alongside the wolf, the two trading various bouts of banter as they approached a sparse area of the forest.

The two males stood on each side of the area, as if creating an invisible ring around themselves. Then, Kirishima's mother held her heart as she witnessed some sort of deadly brawl between the two as their punches clashed with electrifyingly tense chemistry. It was horrifying to watch her son take so many jabs to his body yet stay unmoving for the most part.

Before things could go any further, she sprinted in, "Kirishima Eijirou!" She watched as her son flinched when he heard his full name; meanwhile the wolf stood still, eyes widened slightly as he looked at her. She wasn't sure if he was scared, surprised, or annoyed.

But right now, her main priority was protecting her son. "What is this? What's going on? Why are you letting this... _creature_ hurt you?" She was too wrapped up in her anger to notice the way the wolf silently recoiled and averted his annoyed gaze. Kirishima wanted to reach out, and even began to, but was stopped short by a hand wrapping around his wrist. Before he knew it, he was being dragged away from one of his closest friends.

The walk home was silent, and it felt even longer than when the redhead would walk home by himself.

"You are not allowed to associate yourself with that... thing anymore."

"He's not just a thing, Ma! He's my friend! A really good one at that!"

"What kind of friend... does this to you?" She pointed out the scratches and marks, "Is he the reason why you would come home with these injuries?"

"They're not even that bad! It was just sparring. Ma, I can handle this."

"You shouldn't have to! From this day forward, this... 'friendship' with him is over!"

It was at that moment when Kirishima felt something snap inside of him. The volcano which lay dormant with his emotions trapped inside finally rumbled and erupted, which could shake even his mother to the core. "MA! This is just a whole misunderstanding. God, you didn't need to coddle me this much. For so many years all you did was hover around me, doting constantly! This was the first time I could be independent! It was like a breath of fresh air. You have NO idea how important Bakugou is to me!"

"Eiji, I'm just trying to protect-"

"I get it! I'm important to you, but did you ever stop to think what or who is also important to me? If you can't even look passed the dumb rumours, you're more... ignorant than I thought!"

Their storm of a rather one-sided argument ended at that moment, Kirishima evacuated to his room with the poor wooden stairs creaking under his force. 


	6. Interlocked

Two weeks.

Little Red Riot spent two painful weeks in the place he used to think of as home. Now, it felt like a prison.

Despite her son's misery, Kirishima's mother was convinced she was doing it for his own good. Bakugou was simply too dangerous to be around him. However, it would be a lie to say that her conscience wasn't gnawing at her heart with every passing moment. Kirishima had lost his shine, his toothy grin, his happy attitude.

As if matters could not be any worse, the townspeople were more frantic than ever. Every night, they heard the terrifying howls of a wolf searching for his lost friend. To their ears, it was a warning to all humans. To Kirishima, he could hear the pain and confusion in his cries. There was also... frustration, because Bakugou felt he did not do anything to stop it. All he could do was watch as the one person who had ever so slowly climbed and trekked his way to the top of the wolf's heart was pulled out of his life.

The wolf was unsure why he was feeling so... sad. He would have understood if anger pumped through his veins, but instead it was this lingering feeling of sadness trapping his heart. Even the sun's attempts to cheer him up with its friendly glow against the baby blue sky only appeared dull at most without the human by his side. It became harder to see the beauty of the screeching birds Kirishima yapped on about. Even with Bakugou's naturally high body temperature, his hand felt empty and frigid without the heat from the human's hand holding it. It was hard to admit, but holding his hand made him feel safer than his threatening fangs ever could.

After the weeks passed... the howls grew silent.

That alone woke Kirishima's motivation.

"No please... don't be silent..."

**3AM**

Kirishima made sure his mom was fast asleep, before sprinting out the house like his life depended on it. Some may even argue that it did.

However, the forest was enveloped by the darkness that was the price of a peaceful night. He had never been out this late by himself. He did not let that stop him of course, pushing past shrubs, trampling twigs, searching desperately for a pair of beautiful crimson eyes. _'Wait, beautiful?'_

The redhead slammed into a tree when he became tangled in his thoughts. He looked around, seeing the same branches, the same shadows surrounding him. "Oh great... I don't even recognise the forest anymore..." He complained to himself, pulling his knees up before looking at the brightness of the moon. "Why did you stop...?" He spoke as if Bakugou could hear him, but at that point he wasn't sure if he would ever find him again. Though, he did not let that stop him from trying with one more shout, "KAAATSUKI BAKUGOU!"

"Why the fuck are you so loud?" Kirishima blinked, then looked up.

 _'Beautiful crimson eyes...'_ "BAKUGOU!" In the blink of an eye, Kirishima had sprung up from the ground and thrown himself to hug the wolf. This time, the wolf had no complaints. "You- you heard me?"

"The whole damn forest would have... but I was already looking at you by the time you began your... dumb shout." The hug never loosened. Even though the wolf hesitated at affection before, even he clung to Little Red Riot, mirroring his desperation and... happiness.

For the first time in a while, Kirishima felt his mouth spread into a grin. "That stupid grin looks much better than you being sad."

"Oh yeah? Who was crying every night like a kicked puppy once my mom dragged me away?"

"DO YOU WANT ME TO LEAVE YOU IN THE MIDDLE OF THE FOREST?"

"You wouldn't!" They slumped against the tree with audible sighs, as if that were the first breath of fresh air they had managed to inhale in forever. Finally, Bakugou could feel the squeeze on his heart loosening as a comfortable silent fell between them. "...Hey, Bakugou?"

"What?"

"Could I ask you something?"

"Go on."

"Why... why did you start howling?" Bakugou flinched, his ears pulling back slightly as he averted his gaze to a particularly interesting blade of grass. He picked up that particular blade of grass, then began fiddling with it using his index and thumb.

"I didn't feel angry enough to punch a tree as I usually would." Kirishima let out a small laugh, then without thinking reached a hand to the boy's blonde locks. Immediately, the wolf froze under the touch, Kirishima retracting his hand.

"I... uh... sorry."

"What was that?"

"Headpats?" Kirishima blinked, watching as the other slowly leaned over.

"...Do it." He heard a weird mixture of a growl and a huff as Bakugou refused to meet his eyes. Once again, Kirishima put his hand on his head, gently patting his head. It seemed that neither of the boys could process what was actually happening. They both just stayed quiet and enjoyed the peace of each other's presence.

"Do you want... a head massage?"

"Sure." Kirishima smiled, then gently deepened his reach in the wolf's blonde locks before gently massaging his scalp. Bakugou closed his eyes, continuing to lean into the touch. He let out a small, relaxed breath. Then, he felt a small tug in his hair while Kirishima began to hold himself back from wheezing with laughter. "What's wrong with you?"

"Your hair... is really tangly."

"Shut up, so I'm not a beauty queen. I'm strong as hell."

"I mean... you can be both..." It came out as a mutter.

"What do you mean by that?"

"I mean, I think you're strong _and_ beautiful Katsuki!"

"Just- shut up! You're embarrassing as fuck." A sheepish grin spread on Kirishima's face, beginning to fiddle with the edge of his shirt.

"Hey, Katsuki, would you hate me if I... maybe thought of you as more than a friend?"

"Like what? A brother?"

"Not quite. I mean, um... ugh..." This was enough to make Kirishima look like his face was drawn over by a bright pink highlighter. Ah yes, the concept of 'love' was quite challenging for the youth. "I like you."

"...Same."

"BAKUGOU!"

"WHAT THE HELL DO YOU WANT ME TO SAY?"

"I don't know... how do you feel about me?"

The wolf let out a sigh, propping a knee up before resting his head against the bark, "At first, you were a really fucking annoying human. Always following me around... but... you were kind. There was no denying that. Soon enough I realised that you were also tough as hell. Believe me, someone who is able to take my hits is no pushover... I don't hate you, but... when your mother said we couldn't be together again I was..."

Kirishima raised a brow, "You were what?"

"Scared maybe. There was this painful feeling inside of me which I couldn't express in anything other than a dumb fucking howl. I haven't howled like that in years."

"I'm sorry I took so long to look for you."

"It's fine. I stopped my dumb yelling when I thought more about your mom's words. She was right. I know how people look at me, but that doesn't mean they should look at you the same way just 'cause you hang out with me. It was better that we stopped being seen together—"

"NO WAY!" The wolf's ears pulled back when he heard the shriek, "Katsuki, I never want to be apart from you again. I've told you before, I don't care how others look at us as long as I can be with you."

Bakugou looked at him, then let out a small huff, "You're a passionate moron."

"This passionate moron likes you! Like, like in a mate sort of way! You've heard of mates, right?"

"Mate!?" Bakugou began to yell, his face turning red from either anger or embarrassment.

"Oh man, I'm sorry! I didn't mean to word it that way... I just... I don't know how else to get you to know how I—"

"It's fine." The wolf assured, and to Kirishima's surprise, he looked up to see his toothy grin. He released a small breath and instead laughed off the embarrassment they had managed to tangle themselves in. "If... if someone felt the same way, how would they know? Hypothetically."

"Uhh... well, I guess they would be protective of that person. Not only that but also want to spend the rest of their lives with them. Y'know, and then they would do things like hold hands, kiss, cuddle, those kinds of things. Well, if they are the affectionate type that is."

"So, does that mean you want to kiss me?"

Kirishima stopped short of his ramblings as he took approximately ten years to process an answer for that question, "I- stop, don't ask that. You're gonna cringe."

"Just answer instead of overthinking, dumbass."

"I... um... yeah man. I do."

"Okay. Grow some balls and do it then."

"No, I couldn't dude, there needs to be a certain mood, and besides, my teeth... they're a little—"

The other rolled his eyes as the human continued to state all the reasons why he apparently could not kiss him. Instead of letting him stay tangled in his indecision, Bakugou grabbed the back of the startled male's neck and pulled him close enough to smash their lips together. It was a simple, rough, and quick peck, and left Kirishima stunned before he began to melt.

When Bakugou quickly let go, both the boys were practically emitting steam from the impulsive action, their eyes glued to the ground.

"Well?"

"Your lips are dry, cracked even, I think." Kirishima commented, then began to snicker as Bakugou began glaring daggers at him, "It was really rough as well, then again, I wouldn't expect anything else from a wolf—"

"Alright then, fuck! We don't have to—"

"But it was nice. I could definitely imagine myself doing that more often. With you. Of course."

"Too bad."

"Can I try too?"

"Do whatever, I don't care." Bakugou huffed, crossing his arms as he began to throw a little bit of a tantrum from Kirishima's teasing. However, he didn't retaliate when he felt a pair of warm hands cup his cheeks. Instead, he stayed relaxed as a pair of lips gently pushed against his. This time, it was less awkward.

The moment he felt Kirishima, Bakugou could feel the heat rising in his chest. Despite his sensitive hearing, it seemed as though nothing else existed around them. The wolf couldn't focus on the rustling in the trees, the sound of crickets or the songs of birds. All he could concentrate on was the warmth against his chapped lips; in contrast, Kirishima's were much softer. It was noticeable, but he never dared to mention that detail out loud.

As it progressed, Kirishima ended up finding a place for himself on Bakugou's lap. Bakugou's tail started hitting against the ground as their lips melded together, gripping the other boy's waist while Kirishima began to weave his fingers gently through Bakugou's spiky locks. Their kiss was still awkward, with cautious touches as they got used to the motion, but they let the flow of the moment control their pace.

The boys never grew tired of their experiments, taking short breaks between their kisses before Kirishima had a sudden burst of courage and tested the waters. He gently swiped a tongue against Bakugou's lower lip, and heard a growl rise from the wolf, before he opened his mouth and let their tongues meet. They were tangled in their own world, and for a moment, had no concerns other than the desire to be closer to one another.

It must have been 5:00am once they finished. They took another break, Kirishima resting his forehead against Bakugou's as both their chests rose from the panting. The human could feel something beginning to poke him, but he decided to avoid commenting on it. Their cheeks were pink as they sat in silence until Kirishima stood up and pulled Bakugou up with him. "What are you doing?"

"I'm taking you home. My mother either accepts you or loses me." Kirishima declared, looking so determined that Bakugou forgot to make a snide remark in response. He stayed quiet as Kirishima tightly gripped his hand on their journey home. "Also, I didn't tell her that I was leaving to find you so right now... she's either worried to death or asleep." He added on with a laugh, yelling in triumph as he processed the fact that he had managed to express his feelings.

Kirishima burst through the front door, nearly giving his mother a heart attack as she grabbed a broom ready to hit him across the head in case he was an unwanted visitor.

"E... Eiji?" She was catching her breath from the fright, "Why are you awake? Hell, what were you doing outside? With..." The mother stopped and looked down, seeing their interlocked fingers while Bakugou was glaring at her with a challenging look in his eyes.

"Ma, I need to talk to you." Kirishima tightened his grip around Bakugou, "I ran away because I wanted to see him. Please, he's not a bad guy. You need to actually learn about who he is before you judge him. I. Like. Him." Even Bakugou was a little surprised at his insistence, "If you can't accept him for who he is... then... then I'll move! I'll go to the woods and live with Bakugou!"

His mother crossed her arms, and couldn't stop a small smile forming on her face at Kirishima's declaration, "Move into the woods?" She took a moment to look between them for another moment, then sighed, making eye contact with Bakugou. "Bakugou, is it? Tell me, do you like my son in the same way?"

Bakugou's tail stiffened for a moment as a deep blush stained his cheeks. His ears flattened before giving her a silent, but confident nod.

She knew Kirishima was completely serious about moving into the woods. She didn't want to see him struggling out there, so at that moment, she gave in. "Alright Eiji, you win. In fact, Bakugou can live with us, if that's okay with him."

Kirishima sent a hopeful look in the wolf's direction, "Fine..." was all he could reply.

"Now, shouldn't you boys get some sleep? I can set up a space for you to sleep in Eiji's room. Actually... maybe a shower is in order for you."

Finally, Kirishima let out a breath he was holding. He was more scared of the outcome than he had realised. Despite the reminder of the wolf not being the cleanest, Kirishima pulled him into a tight hug, and he reluctantly reciprocated. It was enough to even make his mother's heart melt.

This may not have been the most traditional tale of Little Red Riding Hood, but who could possibly be mad at this outcome?

**The end.**


End file.
